Dear Kinsmen:

Henry Hudson sailed up the Hudson River 400 years ago to discover and settle the area of Albany. This in turn opened up the Mohawk Valley to discovery. The Palatines who came in 1710 settled the valleys of the Hudson and Mohawk Rivers. We need to honor and remember these Palatines who were our ancestors. Their struggles with homesteading on the frontier, fighting the English, Dutch, French and Indians were always a threat to their lives and homes. They came to this country with nothing. All they wanted was a place to live and raise their families without trouble on their own land. They defended their homes, fought wars and Indians to keep their families safe. They formed committees of safety and local militias. They raised their crops to feed and clothe their families. Wheat became an important crop and the Mohawk Valley became the "bread basket" for General George Washington's Continental Army. Our Palatine ancestors built Snells Bush Church.

Another spring has come to the Mohawk Valley and everyone is busy getting ready for the family reunions and historical events that will happen in the coming weeks and during the summer months. It is a wonderful time to come and visit and take part in the history of the Mohawk Valley. It seems more events take place each year and it is always a problem of just what event to attend. We, the SZT family know which event to attend. We come to honor our ancestors who held the frontier all those years ago and are buried at the Snells Bush Church. We are very proud of our heritage and come and visit our Snells Bush Church, which was the mainstay of the community for all the early settlers. Snells Bush Church stood, as a beacon in their tragic lives. They came to social events and church services as a way to meet neighbors and family and to get a little enjoyment during the week. Times have really not changed too much -as we today also need a beacon to remember our ancestors and to meet neighbors and family at the church on the hill. This year we will again hold an Ice Cream Social-like our ancestors did many years ago on Saturday August 1, 2009 at the church at 6 PM. The Reunion church service will be held at 11 AM at Snells Bush Church on August 2, 2009. We hope to have a re-dedication service at 10 AM to rededicate two cemetery markers for military soldiers whose stones are unreadable. We have applied for replacement stones for Adam Klock and Adam House, Revolutionary War militia men. A catered luncheon will be provided after the business meeting, which follows the church service. Suggestions for speakers, and activities for the afternoon are welcome. Please contact us with ideas. Of course the cemeteries are always a place to gather to find ancestors graves of long ago.

We, as descendants of these early settlers need to keep the Church and cemeteries in good condition just like our ancestors did those many years ago. It is also a struggle today just like it was in the early years. We need funds and members to keep the cemeteries and church in good condition. We are working on restoring cemetery stones that need to be repaired. Some stones are unreadable now and we are able to get new markers with information on them from the Veterans Administrations but other stones especially the women cannot be replaced and are now disappearing. Only the map tells the story of these people buried there. It would be great if we could get markers to remember these women as well as the men that served in the military wars. The women were the ones that raised the children, protected their homes and did the farm work while the men were out fighting for their country.

Last summer we completed the painting of the outside of the church and it really looks wonderful. We are working on painting the interior of the church and fixing the interior wherever it needs repair, and also repairing some of the windows that need repair. Brandt Rostohar repaired the lights on the church steeple and at night the church can be seen from a-far. The cemeteries look good but a few graves need to be filled in. The brush was trimmed back revealing some older stones. The lower cemetery brush was also trimmed and it seems to be a continuous job to keep the brush down. The stones in the lower cemetery need some cleaning, which we are working on.

Weddings are still being held at the church in conjunction with Beardslee's Castle (a restaurant) and this summer we have 8 weddings scheduled. The funds we get for weddings help with the mowing costs, as it is an expensive job to keep the grass mowed around the stones and to make the cemeteries accessible to visitors.

We need 2 new trustees for the board. The Treasurer's position is also up for election. Marlene Rostohar has done a wonderful job for us as treasurer but would like a break, if someone else is interested in that position. Please let us know if you are interested. The board also reviewed the by-laws. The only suggested change was to allow telephone contact by the president to all members of the board as needed for immediate decisions. The board meets in May and October and at reunion time. There will be copies of the by-laws at the reunion.

We welcome any comments or suggestions. Please send updates on family members - births, deaths, and marriages - as we like to keep our church records up to date. For privacy reasons, none of our information, except the person's name is included on the website unless there is a death date. Our website is www.szt-genealogy.org which is run by our web master Ray Kuehne and Bill Boller. They can be contacted at the web site. You can reach us at our mailing address,-SZT Family Reunion Inc. P O Box 623 Little Falls, New York 13365

Sarah Timmerman Israel historian and corresponding. secretary
e-mail --- sarahtisrael@hotmail.com phone 732-828-3508

Nancy Timmerman Cioch president of SZT
e-mail --- ncioch@yahoo.com phone 315-866-3419

The following books are available from the SZT Reunion, Inc. Checks must accompany orders and should be made payable to the SZT Reunion. Mail to the Treasurer, SZT Reunion, Inc., PO Box 623, Little Falls, NY 13365. For a more detailed description, please log on to our web site, www.szt-genealogy.org.

Books by David Kendall Martin:

THE 18TH CENTURY ZIMMERMAN FAMILY - 1994, 331pp. hard cover, $45 + S&H

THE 18TH CENTURY SNELL FAMILY -1982, 144pp., soft cover, $15 + S&H

THE 18TH CENTURY FAILING FAMILY - 1979, 2003, soft cover, $10 + S&H

Books by Carolyn Timmerman Sidenius:

DESCENDANTS OF LAWRENCE TIMMERMAN -1998, 204 pp., soft cover, $18 + S&H

DESCENDANTS OF DAVID TIMMERMAN -1994, 200 pp., soft cover, $18 +S&H

DESCENDANTS OF LT. HENRY TIMMERMAN - 1988, 344 pp., hard cover, $35 +S&H

DESCENDANTS OF GEORGE TIMMERMAN - 1995, 300 pp., soft cover, $25 + S&H

DESCENDANTS OF PETER AND ANNA KILTS SNELL - 1992, 325 pp., soft cover, $25 + S&H

Other books and pamphlets:

PALATINES ALONG THE MOHAWK Ada L. F. Snell, 1948, 2002, soft cover, 76 pp., $9 + S&H

WITH MY GRANDPARENTS Ada L. F. Snell, 1972, 2003 pamphlet, 40 pp., $3 *

HOMESTEAD NOTES Emma S. Timerman, 1971, 2003, soft cover, 28 pp., $7 *

THE WAR YEARS IN THE MOHAWK VALLEY Frank C. Bellinger, 1983, 2003, pam., 20 pp, $2*

FIFTY YEARS WITH THE FAITH OF OUR FATHERS Carolyn T. Sidenius & Edith S. Timmerman, 1988, 2003 pamphlet, 48 pp., $4*

AMERICAN PATRIOTS AT THE BATTLE OF ORISKANY Vera DeWitt, 1977, 2001, soft cover, 60 pp., $5*

THE LAWRENCE ZIMMERMAN PAPERS The Enterprise and News, 1939, The SZT Reunion, Inc., 2003, pamphlet, 32 pp., $3*

*Postage is included in the price of these 6 booklets. For all others please include $5.50 per book for packaging materials and postage.

OTHER RELATED EVENTS:
June 28 Sunday 11 AM Independence Day Service - Ft Herkimer Church & Herkimer Home State Historic Site picnic www.littlefallsny.com/HerkimerHome
July 4 12 -5 PM Strawberry Festival at Fort Klock w/ Tryon County Militia .
July 19, Nellis Reunion will be held at the Nellis Tavern
Sunday, August 2 Snell-Zimmerman-Timmerman Family Reunion at the Snells Bush Church. Saturday evening August 1 will be our annual ice cream social.
August 1 & 2 - Fort Plain Museum - "Holding Down the Fort"
August 6 Memorial of the1777 Battle of Oriskany at Oriskany Historic Site.
August 3 -6 - Canal Days, Little Falls, NY
August 16, Sunday 1-4 PM - General Herkimer Home State Historic Site program commemorating the Life and Death of Nicholas Herkimer
August 16 Kilts Family reunion - Glimmerglass State Park, Cooperstown, NY
September 13 & 14 will be the annual craft fair at Fort Klock.
September 26 & 27 - "Interrupted Harvest" -Fort Klock - re-enactors
October 4 Herkimer Homestead Day: An 18th Century Autumn Celebration at Herkimer Home State Historic Site 12-5
December 6 will be St. Nicholas Day at Fort Klock. http://fortklock.org

For more information on any of the above, contact me. I hope to see you at the SZT Reunion! President and Editor, Nancy Cioch
DIRECTIONS TO SNELLS BUSH CHURCH
FOLLOW SR5 EAST FROM LITTLE FALLS (EXIT 29A ON I-90)
TO RTE 167 NORTH TOWARDS DOLGEVILLE. TURN RIGHT ON DOCKEY RD.
APPROXIMATELY 2 MILES FORM THE SR 5 INTERSECTION.
FOLLOW DOCKEY ROAD ABOUT ONE MILE TO THE
WHITE CHURCH ON THE HILL

F SNELL
R ZIMMERMAN
O TIMMERMAN
M P.O. BOX 623
LITTLE FALLS, NY 13365